#160 Pearl Jam, 'Ten' (1991)

Previously #209

‘Ten,’ Pearl Jam’s debut record, is my favourite album of theirs. Following the death of Mother Love Bone lead vocalist, Andrew Wood, Jeff Ament and Stone Gossard joined up with guitarist, Mike McCready. The trio recorded a 5-track demo with Soundgarden drummer, Matt Cameron, which was then used to shop around for vocalists. Eddie Vedder received the demo via Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer, Jack Irons. Following a surf, Vedder would record vocals on the demo, which he then sent back to the band. In the meantime, Ament, Gossard, McCready and Cameron joined Soundgarden vocalist, Chris Cornell to record the one off album, Temple Of The Dog, a tribute to the late Mother Love Bone vocalist.

This album, although classified as Grunge, is probably more alternative-leaning. It was definitely more radio-friendly than other Grunge bands (Kurt Cobain famously called the band “commercial sellouts”). The album features classic PJ songs such as ‘Once,’ ‘Even Flow,’ ‘Alive,’ ‘Jeremy’ and ‘Black,’ one of my favourite PJ songs. But the album is so good that even the album tracks are great; the ferocity of ‘Porch’ and the guitar solo on ‘Garden. The major gem on the album, for me, which is possibly my favourite Pearl Jam song of all time, is the closing track, ‘Release.’ As the band was jamming, Vedder walked up to the mic and started pouring out the lyrics of the song; a cathartic release of emotions for Vedder who had recently discovered that the man he thought was his father was actually his stepfather and that his biological father had died before they had a chance to connect. The song about pain and loss held similar emotions for his bandmates who had recently lost their friend and previous lead vocalist in Mother Love Bone. The emotion in Vedder’s voice is palpable and is the perfect example of the depth of his songwriting.

#rs500albums